Wednesday - Zig-zag time - Toot toot

Wednesday dawned sunny and pleasant and off we went in our car this time to get to Clarence, near Lithgow, to go on the Zig-Zag Railway. On the way we popped in on the "Explorers Tree":

Apparently when Blaxland, Lawson and Wentworth were crossing the Blue Mountains in 1813 they stopped and marked this tree. The tree stump still stands next to a memorial plaque which is partly decipherable.

Some distance down the road we arrived at Clarence and the Zig-zag railway steam engine was chugging in just as we arrived:

Before we went there we told Mike that we were going on a real steam train. The last time we did this sort of experience Lloyd was 4 and he commented that the ride was nice but he didn't like the "doot" in his eyes. Mike was quite excited but when he saw the engine up close and realised that it was an awful lot bigger than the little Thomas engines he played with at home he was a bit reserved about it.

The railway is run by volunteers. (More deja vu as Hubby and I remembered the carriages as the ones we had in Queensland years ago when the engines were diesels - I also jammed my fingers opening the windows in them, just like I did years ago too). The trains zig-zag their way down the hillside so at the end of each "zig" part you can hop out of the train and watch it make it's way to either end of the train. Lloyd and Matt really enjoyed this part:

After zig-zagging our way to the bottom and back up to the top we ate our packed lunch and took the long trip home enjoying pretty scenery on the way.

At the motel that night we had hilarious fun at dinner. Sadly I can't divulge what happened or it will spoil the fun for future visitors but we went to bed with our sides aching from laughing so much.